Opinion | Hong Kong’s frustration with Beijing is no excuse for nostalgia for the British empire

Brian YS Wong says Hongkongers who miss British rule should be mindful of how its other colonies, from India to states in the Middle East and Africa, suffered so that Britain could prosper

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A protester calling for a defence of the Hong Kong Basic Law and “one country, two systems” holds a British flag during a rally on January 1. Photo: AP

Published: 1:00pm, 28 Sep 2018Updated: 5:49pm, 28 Sep 2018

There is a curious undercurrent in some narratives by pro-democracy and anti-Chinese Communist Party activists in Hong Kong: nostalgia for the days when Hong Kong was a British colony.

The rosy picture that youths – often no older than three or four at the time of the handover – have of the colonial era is perhaps less a celebration of British colonialism than a radical expression of discontent towards Beijing’s perceived interference with Hong Kong’s autonomy.

In distinct juxtaposition, across both Western liberal democracies and post-colonial states in Africa, the Middle East and India, there have been calls for a comprehensive addressing of colonialism’s legacy.

British colonial rule indubitably benefited Hong Kong, through measures ranging from establishing key infrastructure and the rule of law, to propelling the city’s economic miracle in the 1960s and leading its world-class civil service. Yet, just as we remember the immense gains Hong Kong derived under British rule, we must also not neglect the wider, darker sides of colonial rule.

Abraham Chan attends a ceremony for the admission of new senior counsel outside the Court of Final Appeal in Central. Hong Kong’s professional, independent judiciary and rule of law are among the most celebrated legacies of British rule over Hong Kong. Photo: Edward Wong